India's playing 11 from Cheteshwar Pujara's ODI debut in 2013 - where are they now?

Cheteshwar Pujara, one of the finest classical batters to have come out of India, turns 37 on Saturday, January 25. Blessed with an unusual bottom-handed technique, Pujara has displayed composure beyond his years throughout his career and helmed the Indian Test batting unit for several years.

Unfortunately, a slight dip in form saw Pujara being sidelined from the Test team after the loss in the ICC World Test Championship final against Australia in 2023. By then, however, the Saurashtra batter had amassed 7,195 runs in 103 Tests at an extremely impressive average of 43.

He continues to play for Saurashtra in domestic cricket, hoping to make a comeback into the national team, which seems deprived of technically strong batters who can do well against the new ball. This inability of the current group was recently on display against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT), which they lost 1-3.

Although he is predominantly known for his performances in whites, Pujara has also played five ODIs for India. Interestingly, he made his debut in the 50-over format in August 2013 against ZImbabwe, three years after he won his Test cap against Australia in Bengaluru. Pujara's ODI debut also saw two other Saurashtra players in the Indian XI: Ravindra Jadeja and Jaydev Unadkat.

In this piece, we take a look at the players who turned up for India alongside Pujara in that match and what they are up to now:

Top-order: Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli

Pujara opened the innings in his first ODI alongside Rohit Sharma. Although the former got out for 13, Sharma stayed at the crease unbeaten on 64, helping India chase their target of a measly 145 down. He is currently India's ODI and Test captain and even turned up for Mumbai in their ongoing Ranji Trophy game against Jammu and Kashmir.

Suresh Raina, who came in at number three and is one of the best left-handed batters to have played limited-overs cricket for India, retired from the sport in 2022. Virat Kohli, who was slotted to come in at number four in that game, was India's captain back then. He had a miserable tour of Australia recently, scoring just one century in the entire series (a total of 190 runs in nine innings). Kohli will next be seen in action in Delhi's upcoming Ranji Trophy fixture against Railways.

Middle-order: Dinesh Karthik, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja

Dinesh Karthik, who donned the big gloves in this game, was slotted to come in after Kohli, followed by Ambati Rayudu and Ravindra Jadeja. Karthik has retired from international cricket and is currently plying his trade for Paarl Royals in the SA20. Rayudu, too, has retired from cricket and is known to maintain a low profile; only those close to him know that he has taken up farming as a hobby.

Jadeja, Pujara's Saurashtra teammate, is one of the biggest Indian stars at the moment and was recently in the news for helping his team beat Delhi in the Ranji Trophy with a 12-wicket match haul. The left-arm spinner and left-handed batter is one of the best all-rounders in the world and was recently even named in the ICC Test XI for 2024.

Bowlers: Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Mohit Sharma and Jaydev Unadkat

Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Mohit Sharma, and Jaydev Unadkat made up India's bowling unit in this game. Leg-spinner Amit Mishra, long expected to fill in the gap left by Anil Kumble's retirement, has not officially called it a day, though he last played for the country in a T20I in 2017. He also played for Lucknow Super Giants in the 2024 IPL.

Shami, meanwhile, has just made his return to international cricket after a long injury layoff and has been named in the Indian squad for the ICC Champions Trophy, slated to be held in February this year. He might also be seen in action in the ongoing T20I series against England, in which India have gone 1-0 up already.

Mohit and Unadkat are both stalwarts of domestic cricket and continue plying their trade for their respective states Haryana and Saurashtra. Mohit, who too made his debut in this match, played his latest game for India in a T20I in 2015 but has been a bulwark for the Gujarat Titans in the IPL and Haryana in the Ranji Trophy.

Unadkat, meanwhile, earned his Test cap when he was called up into the Indian playing XI in Centurion against South Africa in 2010. However, he had to wait a long time before playing his second Test in 2022. The left-arm seamer, who has played four Tests, eight ODIs, and 10 T20Is, continues to go strong for Saurashtra in domestic cricket.